New York Giants third-round selection Darius Alexander set career highs in snaps played and pressures on Sunday vs. the New Orleans Saints. Alexander played 27 snaps with a pair of pressures and a tackle for loss in the Giants’ 26-14 loss. Alexander, though, did have a quarterback hit that resulted in an interception, which was negated by Tae Banks’ defensive pass interference penalty — no surprise.
Nevertheless, the Giants are starting to see a return on their investment. Prescient as ever, defensive line coach Andre Patterson was confident in his declaration that Alexander will be a player in due time; we may be witnessing those early signs right now.
Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was asked about Darius Alexander in Monday’s press conference; here is that exchange:
QUESTION: Darius Alexander was a healthy scratch week one and now it seems like he’s making some plays. What do you see from his kind of rapid development and do you attribute any of that to maybe lighting a fire under him?
BOWEN: Yeah, I think for anybody, not being out there is probably the best motivator that we have. To his credit, he has worked his butt off and we’ve seen it in practice week in and week out, the development, the growth, using his skill set, using his length. Got a lot of trust in him right now with how he’s playing. He’s been doing it consistently. It hasn’t been a flash in the pan, one-time thing. So, like the trajectory he’s going. Credit to him, he’s worked and he’s overcame where he was early on in the year and he’s taken strides and I think he’s improving every week.
Alexander’s trajectory of development has slowly tilted upward after his injury-plagued off-season that rendered him inactive in Week 1. Alexander has five pressures on 62 pass-rushing reps with two stops, three tackles, and four hurries. Here are all of Alexander’s plays from Week 5:
Alexander’s impact
The Giants needed a defensive lineman to step up with Dexter Lawrence ailing. Two of Alexander’s best pass-rushing reps came on his first two attempts:
On third-and-11, the Saints’ first actual third-down attempt, Alexander hits guard Trevor Penning (70) with a bull-rush from the 4-technique position. Alexander got Penning on ice-skates and worked the half-man to the outside, stressing the edge of Penning into the pocket. Penning grabbed cloth and held Alexander, impeding his ability to turn the corner, as Spencer Rattler (2) maneuvered to his right and delivered an incomplete pass that was knocked down by Jevon Holland (8).
The Giants lost this football game — no excuses. However, the Saints were holding the Giants’ defenders all game. Nevertheless, Alexander did enough to force Rattler to step aside in the pocket and eye down his receiver long enough to allow Holland to break down on the crossing route and get his hand on the football. Alexander’s next pass rep came on a third-and-5 opportunity that would have been intercepted if Tae Banks wasn’t, well, Tae Banks:
Alexander did an exceptional job hitting Rattler as he released the football, again winning with power through the guard’s outside shoulder. Alexander took Penning ice-skating, once again, and controlled the offensive lineman’s outside arm, above the elbow joint; he then crashed into the pocket, hitting Rattler and forcing the would-be interception. Great rep by the Giants’ third-round pick.
However, on the third-and-14 above, we see Penning anticipate the bull-rush move and sit back to absorb the power. Alexander’s chest is controlled and his force into contact is exhausted.
Alexander successfully returned to a power rush during the two-minute drill. I appreciate how Alexander stays low and gets his feet underneath him, while consistently churning his feet through Penning. Technically speaking, Alexander has improved in his short time as an NFL player; his hips are low, he’s playing more balanced, and his upper-body (hands/elbows) are tight. He’s still developing with maximizing explosiveness and speed, though.
Earlier in the second quarter, we see good hand usage from Alexander against Penning. The rookie breaks the contact of Penning and creates sufficient space to threaten an angle into the pocket, while effectively landing a rip move underneath the arm-pit of Trevor Penning. Alexander displays techinque, hand usage, understanding/competency, and reactive quickness. It’s not the fastest win, but it does display development.
Run defense
Alexander bench-pressed Torricelli Simpkins III (68) into the backfield as the defensive end in the TITE front on second-and-four. Alexander was the defender away from the front-side run by Alvin Kamara (41) but Alexander’s push into the pocket effectively removed any cut-back lane to the backside for Kamara.
It was a quarterback draw, which renders the tackle for a loss rather than the ever elusive sack. Still, this is a great play by Alexander, whose force created about a yard of separation versus Simpkins. Alexander then located, closed width, and violently finished the tackle of the the second-year quarterback. Alexander played just eight run defense snaps against the Saints.
Final thoughts
The 2025 season remains bleak for a Giants’ team that just cannot get out of their own way. Alexander, though, has displayed signs of development after a slow start to his NFL career. He’s showing technical proficiency with his hands, something that Dre Patterson has discussed with the media. He’s finding solutions and getting to the half-man at a quicker rate than the previous three games. These are all positive aspects of Alexander’s play that are noteworthy.
However, the explosiveness we loved about Alexander’s college tape has yet to manifest at the NFL level. That may transpire as he becomes more comfortable with the speed of the NFL; perhaps it was the big fish in a small pond effect — time will tell. At least we can look at Alexander as a player whom the Giants are comfortable enough to dress and play in big situations, and he didn’t look out-matched. He’s still developing, but at least he is doing that.
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